Balonne Shire Council cannot 'hasten' levee process: mayor

FLOOD FACTS: Balonne Shire Council mayor Donna Stewart, pictured inspecting the swollen Balonne River with Prime Minister Julia Gillard in 2012, says the council has to get the facts about a permanent levee "on paper" before information can be released

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BALONNE Shire Council mayor Donna Stewart has slammed suggestions the council is moving too slowly on flood mitigation planning for St George.

As the one-year anniversary of the 2012 flood approaches, several flood-affected residents have questioned why there is still no definitive answer on the mitigation for the town.

Cr Stewart said the council could not "hasten the process" of coming up with the optimal solution.

"We are in constant contact (with the Queensland Reconstruction Authority) and have impressed on them the need to do it as soon as possible," she said.

"We have to wait impatiently like everyone else in the community for some solid calibrations that enable us to make a decision on where a permanent levee can be placed for the most protection and least impact on the community."

While many levee opponents say they believed an unofficial decision had already been made, Cr Stewart said that was not the case and that a levee would not be built if it was deemed to be detrimental to the community.

"If the impacts are too horrendous, obviously we will have to give it some serious consideration before we proceed," she said.

"But that's not the information we are expecting to get."

It is not yet known how the council will present the predictive modelling results to the community but Cr Stewart said she would be pushing for full disclosure.

"I believe that the people in the community are entitled to it," she said.

"I would not support withholding any information...but we can't release anything until we've got facts on paper."